Prostitution in Thailand is not itself illegal, but public solicitation for prostitution is prohibited if it is carried out "openly and shamelessly" or "causes nuisance to the public". Due to police corruption and an economic reliance on prostitution dating back to the Vietnam War, it remains a significant presence in the country. It results from poverty, low levels of education and a lack of employment in rural areas. Prostitutes mostly come from the northeastern (Isan) region of Thailand, from ethnic minorities or from neighbouring countries, especially Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos.*
In 2019, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimated the total population of sex workers in Thailand to be 43,000.
Legal underpinnings The legal framework governing prostitution in Thailand is based upon three acts:
Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act The Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act, B.E. 2539 (1996) is the statute most directly dealing with prostitution. Under the act, the definition of "prostitution" is "Sexual intercourse, or any other act, or the commission of any other act in order to gratify the sexual desire of another person in a promiscuous manner in return for money or any other benefit, irrespective of whether the person who accepts the act and the person who commits the act are of the same sex or not." A clear definition of the phrase "in a promiscuous manner" is not provided.
Under the act, persons who solicit sex "... in an open and shameless manner..." (a phrase that is not clearly defined), or who are "... causing nuisance to the public..." are subject to a fine. Persons associating in a "prostitution establishment" with another person for the purpose of prostitution faces a jail term or a fine or both. The term "prostitution establishment" is clearly defined in Section 4 of the relevant Act, and it may be broadly interpreted to include any place where prostitution takes place, especially in regard to cases involving sexual abuse of children that carry heavier penalties (up to six years if the child is younger than 15 years of age)—otherwise, the law is not usually enforced against prostitution in private places. The act also imposes heavier penalties against owners of prostitution businesses and establishments. The criminal code also stipulates penalties for procuring or using money earned from prostitution.
The Prevention and Suppression of Prostitution Act was written with a particular focus upon sexual abuse and trafficking of children. Section 8 penalizes those who sexually abuse children under the age of 15 years with a prison term of two to six years and a fine of up to 120,000 baht. For child victims between the ages of 15 and 18 years, the prison term is one to three years, and the fine is up to 60,000 baht.
In regard to trafficking, Section 9 of the act states that, "Any person who procures, seduces or takes away any person for the prostitution of such person, even with her or his consent and irrespective of whether the various acts which constitute an offence are committed within or outside the Kingdom, shall be liable to imprisonment for a term of one to ten years and to a fine of twenty thousand to two hundred thousand Baht."
Additionally, any offense under Section 9 that is committed "by means of fraud, deceit, threat, violence, [or] the exercise of undue influence or coercion," results in a penalty that is "one-third heavier".
Obtaining sexual services for oneself without any of the aggravating circumstances (underage victim, trafficking, by fraud, deceit, threat, violence, or the exercise of undue influence or coercion) remains legal and is not subject to punishment under Thai law.
Penal Code Amendment Act The Penal Code Amendment Act (No. 14), B.E. 2540 (1997) does not state that prostitution in Thailand is illegal.
However, Title IX, Section 286 of the Penal Code states: "Any person, being over sixteen years of age, [sic] subsists on the earning of a prostitute, even if it is some part of her incomes [sic], shall be punished with imprisonment of seven to twenty years and fined of fourteen thousand to forty thousand Baht, or imprisonment for life." While penalties are not specified, the same section of the act penalizes any person who (i) is found residing or habitually associating with a prostitute, (ii) receives boarding, money or other benefits arranged for by a prostitute or (iii) assists any prostitute in a quarrel with a customer.
The Act was also written to address child prostitution, but lacks complete clarity, as it does not define what an "indecent act" is. Title IX, Section 279 of the Penal Code states: "Whoever, commits an indecent act on a child not yet over fifteen years of age, whether such child shall consent or not, shall be punished with imprisonment not exceeding ten years or fined not exceeding twenty thousand Baht, or both."
Entertainment Places Act The Entertainment Places Act of 1966 places the onus upon the owner of certain types of entertainment establishments if prostitution occurs on the premises, thereby making them criminally liable. According to the act, sex workers must also undergo rehabilitation for one year at a reform house upon the completion of punishment for practicing prostitution there.
Related activities such as brothel keeping, solicitation and profiting from the prostitution of others are illegal. Public nuisance laws are also used against prostitution. Prostitution operates clandestinely in many parts of the country.
Extent
Since the Vietnam War, Thailand has gained an international reputation among travellers from many countries as a sex tourism destination. The precise number of prostitutes in Thailand is difficult to assess. Estimates vary widely and are subject to national and international controversy. No Thai government has ever conducted a formal survey. A 2004 estimate by Dr. Nitet Tinnakul of Chulalongkorn University gave a total of 2.8 million sex workers, including two million women, 20,000 adult males, and 800,000 minors under the age of 18, but the figures for women and minors were considered to be grossly inflated by most observers, and to have resulted from poor research methods. According to a 2001 report by the World Health Organization: "The most reliable suggestion is that there are between 150,000 and 200,000 sex workers." In its annual human rights report for 2008, the US State Department noted that, "A government survey during the year found that there were 76,000 to 77,000 adult prostitutes in registered entertainment establishments. However, NGOs believed there were between 200,000 and 300,000 prostitutes." The state department's 2013 Human Rights Report for Thailand made no estimates of the extent of prostitution, but in 2015 Havocscope, a database providing information about the global black market, gave an approximate figure of about 250,000 for the number of prostitutes working in Thailand. UNAIDS in 2015 estimated the total population of sex workers in Thailand to be 147,000.
It has been suggested for example that there may be as many as 10,000 prostitutes on Ko Samui alone, an island resort destination not usually noted for prostitution, and that at least 10 percent of tourist dollars may be spent on the sex trade. A 2022 paper from Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok estimated that 50,000 sex workers were based in Pattaya, giving it one of the largest sex industries in Southeast Asia. An estimate published in 2003 placed the sex trade at US$4.3 billion per year, or about three percent of the Thai economy. In 2015 Havocscope said that about US$6.4 billion in annual revenue was being generated by the trade, a figure which accounted for 1.6 percent of Thailand's GDP. Havocscope says that sex workers in Thailand send an annual average of US$300 million to family members who reside in more rural areas of Thailand.
In 1996, the police in Bangkok estimated that there were at least 5,000 Russian prostitutes working in Thailand, many of whom had arrived through networks controlled by Russian gangs.
In July 2016, it was reported that the Thai government intended to abolish the sex industry. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, the tourism minister, said "Tourists don't come to Thailand for [sex]. They come here for our beautiful culture" and that "We want Thailand to be about quality tourism. We want the sex industry gone". Kobkarn was replaced as tourism minister in November 2017. The Royal Thai Police says that more than 24,000 people were arrested, prosecuted and fined for offences related to prostitution in 2019.
The closure of the country's borders in 2020 as a reaction to the COVID-19 pandemic in Thailand resulted in there being few foreign clients for the country's sex workers. 35 percent of them had no access to public cash relief; some were refused government financial aid after they identified themselves as sex workers, while others had to lie about their profession in order to receive payments. Many switched to jobs outside the sex industry. The Department of Women's Affairs and Family Development said that it was providing sex workers with relief supplies and job training. It also said that it was planning to amend the country's prostitution law to allow them to access social welfare benefits, as only 5 percent were part of Thailand's social security system.
Location
The primary tourist "prostitution zones" of Thailand are often identified as the red-light districts of Bangkok, and Pattaya as well as Patong Beach Resort on Phuket Island. In addition, Hat Yai and other Malaysian border cities cater to Malaysians. In Bangkok, the areas most commonly associated with prostitution include the entertainment district of Patpong, as well as locations in the western Sukhumvit Road area, such as the street called Soi Cowboy and the Nana Plaza building. The area known as the Ratchadaphisek entertainment district, running along Ratchadaphisek Road near the Huai Khwang intersection, is the location of several large entertainment venues, which include sexual massage. Lumphini Park in central Bangkok is well-known as a prostitution spot after dark. In Pattaya the primary areas associated with prostitution are Boyztown, Sunee Plaza and Walking Street.
Rather than face of the risks of working independently, many sex workers choose the relative safety that comes with fixed employment in businesses such as "karaoke" bars, "massage" parlours, or brothels. Prostitution may take place in a number of different types of venues, including brothels, hotels, massage parlours, restaurants, saunas, hostess bars, go-go bars and "beer bars". Many other service sector workers offer sexual services as a sideline. Thai prostitution is divided into different sectors that serve different markets (the main criteria being the socioeconomic status of customers and the nationality of both customers and prostitutes). Straightforward brothels, which offer no services aside from sex, represent the lower end of the market. These are most common outside Bangkok, serving low-income Thai men.
Profiting from prostitution is prohibited under Thai law, but karaoke bars and massage parlours can be registered as normal, legal businesses. When arrests of sex workers occur at such premises, police usually treat the act of prostitution as an exchange between the sex worker and the client—an exchange to which the owner of the business was not a party. Although uncommon, cases of foreign clients being charged have happened, with Pattaya being the location in which most foreigners have been caught up in a police raid. Owners of such establishments are only accused of crimes when breaking other laws, such as the employment of underage workers or illegal migrants.
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